As the original inscription indicates, the sitter was thirty-six when portrayed by Hals. The portrait's immediacy is enhanced by vivid brushwork, strong modeling, and a glance and heartfelt gesture which respond to the viewer. The oval framing device was adapted from Dutch portrait engravings but is more illusionistic than in almost any print.

As the original inscription indicates, the unidentified sitter was thirty-six years old when Hals painted his likeness, in 1625.

The illusionistic oval frame, the diagonal recession of the figure, and the conspicuous gesture are devices that appear frequently in Hals's portraits from the mid-1620s onward. Also typical of his work during this period is the bright illumination of the head and hand.

The man's gesture—placing his hand on his heart—suggests sincerity, as explained by John Bulwer in his Chirologia: or the naturall language of the hand of 1644.

W. R. Valentiner. Frans Hals Paintings in America. Westport, Conn., 1936, pp. 8–9, no. 13, ill. [cat. section unpaginated], sees the influence of Rubens; notes that Hals uses the same position of the hand in several portraits of about this date, including that of Anna van der Aar (MMA, 29.100.9).

A Catalogue of Paintings in the Bache Collection. under revision. New York, 1937, unpaginated, no. 35, ill.